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Originally Posted by lisaly  Unless there are reasons why she shouldn't walk long distances, I doubt there's much of a limit. I was walking with my Rainbow Bridge baby, Ashley, for greater than two miles at a time, even when she was close to seventeen. Katie can walk for miles at a time and then runs endlessly at fast speeds to fetch her ball when we come back from walking. I was worried that it could be too much for her knees, especially with all of her jumping to catch her ball midair, but her vet told me that they are doing great. As Mikki becomes more conditioned, she will be able to walk farther. Ashley had age related arthritis, but she loved her walks. |
I so hope my girls are the same way.
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Originally Posted by Maximo I hope my boys take after Ashley and continue to enjoy their walks all of their lives.
I'm happy to hear Katie's knees continue to be strong. Max also jumps high to catch toys and to greet me when I return home. He worries me doing this on the hard kitchen floor. So far, his knees are holding up too. |
It was my understanding, at least in Lane's case, that exercise was good to help strengthen the muscle around the knees!
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Originally Posted by Britster This!
My friends 4lb and 6lb yorkies can easily walk 4-6 miles no problemo.
It's good for them! Obviously I wouldn't walk a dog who is not used to being walked long distances that far, but slowly condition them to it. But I think it's better to allow them to learn how to use their bodies, etc, then totally prevent it. I think more injury can occur with some kind of a freak accident if a dog has never been allowed to do certain things etc. |
Agreed. My girls can go and go and go, but they are bigger for what it's worth, so they don't have to walk quite as many steps per human step as a smaller dog. Our only deterrent seems to be the heat. Their weekday walks are usually about 2 miles and the weekends can be anywhere from 2 to 8+ just depending on several factors.